1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a disc cartridge having encased therein a disc-shaped recording medium such as an optical disc, magneto-optical disc or the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
As the disc-shaped recording medium, a disc cartridge having a magneto-optical disc for example encased therein has been proposed.
Referring now to FIG. 1, there is schematically illustrated a conventional disc cartridge in the form of a perspective view. In FIG. 1, the disc cartridge is generally indicated with a reference 101. The disc cartridge 101 includes a cartridge body 106 consisting of a pair of upper shell 111 and lower shell 112 assembled to each other. These upper and lower shells 111 and 112 are made of a resin material. Each of the upper and lower shells 111 and 112 has formed therein an access opening 115 having a generally rectangular shape. The access openings 115 are opposite to each other. Thus, a part of the recording area of the magneto-optical disc 105, extending between lead-in and lead-out areas, is exposed to outside through the openings 115 for data read and write.
The lower shell 112 of the cartridge body 106 has formed therein adjacent or next to the access opening 115 an opening 117 through which a disc table (not shown) of a disc drive mechanism which drives to rotate the magneto-optical disc 105 comes into the cartridge body 106.
Further, the cartridge body 106 has a shutter member 120 mounted thereon as shown in FIG. 1. Normally, the shutter member 120 covers or closes the access openings 115 and drive opening 117. When the disc cartridge 101 is loaded into a recorder/player, the shutter member 120 will be moved to open the access and drive openings 115 and 117. The shutter member 120 consists of an upper shutter portion which closes and opens the access opening 115 in the upper shell 111, a lower shutter portion which closes and opens the access opening 115 and drive opening 117 in the lower shell 112, and a connection to which each of the upper and lower shutter portions is connected at one end thereof.
When the disc cartridge 101 constructed as in the above is loaded into the recorder/player, the shutter member 120 is moved by a shutter open/close member of the recorder/player to open the access openings 115 and drive opening 117. The disc table of the disc drive mechanism (not shown) of the recorder/player comes into the disc cartridge through the drive opening 117 to rotate the magneto-optical disc 105 in the disc cartridge 101, while the write/read head of the recorder/player comes into the disc cartridge 101 through the access openings 115 to write/read information to/from the magneto-optical disc 105.
In the aforementioned conventional disc cartridge 101, however, since the front end thereof at which the disc cartridge 101 is first inserted into and removed from the recorder/player is formed straight perpendicularly to the direction of insertion into the recorder/player and both the main sides of the cartridge body 106 are formed generally square, it is difficult to easily know the correct inserting direction of the disc cartridge 101 from its appearance.
Therefore, the conventional disc cartridge 101 is likely to be inserted in a wrong direction into the recorder/player.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to overcome the abovementioned drawbacks of the prior art by providing a disc cartridge having a body whose front end to be opposite to a recorder/player may be designed to have an arbitrary shape for easy knowing of a correct direction of insertion into the recorder/player and provided with a shutter open/close mechanism suitable for use with the cartridge body having the arbitrarily shaped front end.
The above object can be attained by providing a disc cartridge including according to the present invention a disc-shaped recording medium; a cartridge body having formed therein a disc compartment to house the disc-shaped recording medium; an access opening formed in the cartridge body and through which a part of the recording area of the disc-shaped recording medium, extending between lead-in and lead-out areas, is exposed to outside for data read and write; a shutter member provided movably to open and close the access opening; and a shutter open/close mechanism having a guide recess to support the shutter member movably. The guide recess of the shutter open/close mechanism is formed on a main side of the cartridge body to be oblique relative to the width of the cartridge body. The shutter open/close mechanism includes a guide member supporting the shutter member and movably engaged in the guide recess, an operating member to move the guide member, a transmission member linking the guide member and the operating member to each other to transmit an operating force from the operating member to the guide member, and support surfaces formed on the cartridge body to support the operating member movably. The transmission member is pivotably connected to the guide member and/or operating member.
In the disc cartridge constructed as in the above, when the shutter open/close member moves the shutter member, the operation member is operated. The guide member is moved along the guide recess by the transmission member which transmits the operating force from the operating member to the transmission member and thus the shutter member opens and closed the access opening. When transmitting the operating force from the operating member to the guide member, the transmission member is pivoted relative to the operating member and/or guide member.
In the above disc cartridge according to the present invention, the guide recess formed on a main side of the cartridge body to be oblique relative to the width of the cartridge body allows the front end of the cartridge body at which the disc cartridge is first inserted into the recorder/player to be formed in an arbitrary shape for easily knowing a correct direction of insertion in the recorder/player, so that the disc cartridge can be prevented from being inserted in a wrong direction into the recorder/player. Also, the shutter open/close mechanism suitable for use on the cartridge body whose front end is formed in the arbitrary shape permits the shutter member to positively open and close the access openings.
These objects and other objects, features and advantages of the present intention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.